So late 2010 after much research, I plop down some dough on a Decware system. ERR, ZP3, Integrated, and....CD Player. I figure breakin time probably good now but systems seems a little flat. I asked Steve about speaker placement, maybe that's it. Maybe more breakin time. I don't know, I just got discouraged. Then My Integrated blew left channel. Now I'm thinking Hmmm. I don't get the hype. Integrated is back (without tubes, waiting on those, long story). Anyway I got the system up again with a 25 watt push pull audio innovations amp. Cold, flat. Whatever... I'm a VMPS man anyway. Brain Cheney is 30 minutes from my Home. Why did I go into another direction anyway (that is, Single Ended)?

One day I'm fooling with some wires in the back and decided to pull out my Decware CD Player. What???? What are these 2 gold plated connectors doing by themselves unconnected. Oh no!!! I have my interconnect cables going into the Tascam provided connectors. Heart pounding I connect to the gold plated connectors, you know, the one close to the tubes hit play, nothing. then flipped the toggle switch, sound at low volume, then I turned the nob in the back of the unit (the one that never worked before) and I got volume. Now I'm hearing things. Bells are ringing in the back round of my system. Guitars are strummin like never before. Then I thought.... what an idiot. 1 -1/2yrs connected like that.

Sade's voice became real (almost). Now I get it. How stupid.

Well I hope I entertained somebody tonight. But I do have a question. Do I still have to wait for break in time being that I just connected to the tube section of the unit?

This kind of thing happens to virtually everyone. There was a time when I kept having to turn my amp up more and more. Then I began to suspect the output tubes. Then I finally realized that the remote control for the CD player had a volume control; I had been inadvertently pressing the down volume button and it was reducing the output of the player. That was an easy fix.

Thanks for all the encourage words. I am now more interested in what my SE34I.2 will sound like with this system. I still have my Ideal Innovations push pull 25 watts hooked up to it. The Ideal Innov always had a Solid State-ish kind of sound to it. So my SE34I.2 Integrated should lend some sweetness to it but without the gain/volume of 25 watts. We will see.

Overall it sounds a whole lot better. My Mapleshade Powerstrip Stratum just arrived today so I should be in audio/playing around/hooking up wires/emptying boxes and Styrofoam Heaven.

Funny you mention having a second system. I have a pr of VMPS STR III Special Edition in storage. Brian put new 15inch woofers in them, then I put them in storage. I use to own the Tower II, RMII, and Subs as well. I also have Mr. Poons Class A 100 watt Monoblocks (Monarchs) in there, I think I have a Van Alstine Tube Pre, and a George Wright Pre floating in the Bay Area at someones house on loan for the past couple of years. I would be interested in hearing this Decware Integrated and Decware CD Player with the VMPS's which is 91 Db. Hmmmm. I will dial this system in real good before I can start having that kind of fun.

Did I miss the instruction sheet for the modified machine, or is it just that there isn't one? I suppose it's all too obvious to most, but in my haste to hook-up I think I did the same thing as the first poster (only a day, thou). I don't think there are any even any website pictures (my speed, I suppose) of the current configuration: two tubes, two knobs, gold rcas (red, white), extra switch and led in the front, ... no labels. Also of note would be the fact that the power is applied to tubes all the times, even with original power button off (somewhere in a review).

Some might say an idiot like me shouldn't be allowed to own such a sophisticated machine. Love the sound; a cheat sheet would not be totally inappropriate. The phrase "intuitively obvious to most casual of observer" comes to mind. But, what can you expect from a EE?